Highlights of PCA Company Projects 2015

2015 was an outstanding year for PCA industry partnership projects, our students have had the opportunity to flex their creative muscles and show off their amazing talent with a wide range of professional experiences:

Decléor
Decléor, international leader in aromatherapy, invited PCA students to create a new uniform for the beauty aestheticians aligned with the brand’s new visual identity. The finalist of the project, Xavier Thurston (Fashion Design Class of ’16), worked closely with the prototyping agency to further develop his design that will be worn by Decléor aestheticians in their spas worldwide starting in early 2016.

Bibliothèque Château d’Eau & Rencontres Photographiques
Since May 2015, Paris College of Art has been a proud partner of the Bibliothèque Château d’Eau, which houses the biggest collection of books on photography in Paris. This year, in collaboration with the prestigious library, PCAparticipated in the exhibitions and events of Rencontres Photographiques, organized each year by Château d’Eau and the Mairie du 10e.

Last May, PCA Photography class of ’15 students held their senior thesis exhibition there. As part of our partnership, the PCA community will continue holding exhibitions in this space. Students and faculty also have access to their vast resources, including their study room (equipped with free wifi) on the fourth floor overlooking Paris.

Rencontres Photographiques also offered carte blanche to the PCA photography department to create an exhibition highlighting the work developed within the department. The resulting exhibition entitled Image: Réalités et Apparence,was curated by Photography department chair Klaus Frutchnis and his students.

Fédération Française des dentelles et broderies (FFDB)
This year our fashion students participated for the fourth time in the contest Détournement de matières – Interprétations de dentelles et broderies pour de nouvelles applications , organized by the Fédération Française des dentelles et broderies (FFDB). Our students presented prototypes of reimagined uses for lace, based upon materials provided by the FFDB. The winners will be announced in Spring 2016.

Mauboussin
Mauboussin launched their first jewelry design contest, Mauboussin Young Talent, last September with PCA. The students in the class Intro to Accessories Design worked on this contest during one semester and created a unique piece of jewelry presenting the design, its story and its philosophy. The jury, consisting of Laurence Ferrari, Virginie Guilhaume, Barbara Bui, Laura Flessel and Caroline Vreeland, selected the winning project created by Gabriele Iacono, Communication Design class of ’16. Gabriele received a prize of 10,000 € and Mauboussin will produce and commercialize his project. The President of Mauboussin, Alain Némarq, was also so impressed with the design of Cherry Lazar (aka Stephanie Key) that he wanted to produce her design as well!